I live in an older home (104 years old to be precise) that was built with amazing quality. We're talking solid brick with exterior walls two feet thick. Interior walls have thick plaster and lathe. While we love our home, the downside has been WiFi coverage to all our house. We had the last generation of Apple's Airport/Time Capsule that was dual-band A/C. While it did OK, it didn't reach to the fringes of our house. The router was placed in our loft, which was our third floor. That meant coverage in our finished basement was sketchy and forget about it reaching our detached garage at the rear of our property. The only place we could enjoy the maximum download speeds was on our second and third floors. I tried to use an Apple Airport range extender, but that was just awful. While it did extend the range, it slowed down the entire network and increased network latency. Add to all this, our decision to evolve into a smart home. Between Echo Dots, Smart Plugs, Lights, Ring doorbells + security, we have over 30 smart devices attached to the WiFI. The more we added, the slower our network got until we started noticing our video streaming buffering (which it never did before). Bottom line, we needed a WiFi router upgrade.
At first, I thought we needed a mesh system to get the coverage we needed, but then I read a comment in another review that said frequently, a quality tri-band router will get you similar coverage. I began looking at tri-band routers on Amazon and saw this model was highly rated. I honesty didn’t know what to expect, knowing the difficult environment in our house. I figured I’d give it a try and if it didn’t perform, I’d return it. Needless to say, I was blown away after setting it up. And speaking of set up, their smartphone app made it exceptionally easy. Studying best practices for eliminating network congestion, I kept all the smart devices on the 2.4 ghz band and migrated everything else to the 5ghz bands. I gave my gaming addicted son his own (second) 5 ghz band. The left the first 5ghz band available for all our computers and (3) Roku devices.
Now, everything performs flawlessly. The range is amazing. OUR ENTIRE PROPERTY IS COVERED. I literally stood behind our garage on the property line about 120’ from the router. Excellent coverage. Download speeds only took about a 15% hit at that point. The signal reaches everywhere in the house and all at maximum speed. No more buffering. We are getting every megabit our ISP promised with about a dozen extra for good measure. No more video buffering. No more troublesome network latency. I configured our old Apple Airport/Time Capsule to work just as the Time Capsule and backups seem to be much faster now.
Oh, and the Alexa integration allows me to turn on and off the Guest access by simple voice command. I’ve yet to learn the other skills it has.
Naturally, I can’t speak to the durability of the unit since it is still new but given TP-Link’s stellar reputation for customer service, I’m not worried. I highly recommend this router!
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From the brand
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Founded in 1996, TP-Link is a global provider of reliable networking devices and accessories, involved in all aspects of everyday life.
With a proven heritage of stability, performance, and value, TP-Link has curated a portfolio of products that meet the networking needs of all individuals.
Now, as the connected lifestyle continues to evolve, the company is expanding today to exceed the demands of tomorrow.
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WiFi 7
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USB to Ethernet Adapters
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Compare with similar items
This Item  TP-Link AC4000 Tri-Band WiFi Router (Archer A20) -MU-MIMO, VPN Server, 1.8GHz CPU, Gigabit Ports, Beamforming, Link Aggregation |  |  |  |  |  | |
| Price | $139.99 | -22% $69.99 List Price: $89.99 | -10% $269.99 List: $299.99 | -10% $179.99 List: $199.99 | $247.99 | -34% $86.00 List: $129.99 |
| Delivery | Get it as soon as Monday, Jul 15 | — | — | Get it as soon as Monday, Jul 15 | Get it as soon as Monday, Jul 15 | — |
| Customer Ratings | ||||||
| WiFi signal | ||||||
| User interface | ||||||
| Tech Support | ||||||
| Value for money | ||||||
| Easy to install | ||||||
| Sold By | CE Store (SN Recorded) | Amor Tech | instawrapshop | Amazon.com | RedDotSales | Olive Branch Enterprises |
| connectivity tech | Ethernet | Wi-Fi Built In, Ethernet, USB | Wi-Fi, Ethernet, USB | — | Wi-Fi, Ethernet, USB | Wi-Fi |
| number of ports | 5 | — | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 |
| data transfer rate | 750 megabits per second | — | 6579 megabits per second | 5400 megabits per second | 5400 megabits per second | 2976 megabits per second |
| wireless standard | 802 11 AC | — | 802 11 AX, 802 11 AC, 802 11 N, 802 11 G, 802 11 B | 802 11 AX, 802 11 AC, 802 11 N, 802 11 G, 802 11 B | 802 11 AX, 802 11 AC, 802 11 N, 802 11 G, 802 11 B | 802 11 AX, 802 11 AC, 802 11 B, 802 11 G, 802 11 N |
| frequency band class | tri band | tri band | tri band | tri band | tri band | dual band |
| lan port bandwidth | 2 | — | 10/100/1000 Mbps | 10/100/1000 Mbps | 10/100/1000 Mbps | 10/100/1000 Mbps |
From the manufacturer
Premium WiFi Performance
Enjoy a premium WiFi performance with the Archer A20. The A20 comes with an unbelievably powerful processor and is packed with state-of-the-art features such as MU-MIMO, Tri-Band, NitroQAM, and TP-Link HomeCare. Enjoy explosively fast long range WiFi for more devices with the Archer A20.
Airtime Fairness
Airtime Fairness ensures your faster devices are not limited by slower devices on your network, keeping them operating at top speeds.
More Connections with MU-MIMO
MU-MIMO enables your router to work with several devices simultaneously so that everyone can hop online at once and experience a smooth connection**.
Speed Boost with 1024-QAM
1024-QAM increases the amount of data sent through your router, giving you a speed boost of up to 25% over previous generations.
Smart Connect
Smart Connect automatically steers your devices towards the optimal band, giving you a faster network with no extra work required.
Go Faster with Tri-Band Speeds
Use not just two but three networking highways to accelerate your network speeds and minimize disruptions. Reach combined speeds of up to 4.0 Gbps*.
Far-Reaching WiFi Coverage
From the bedroom to the basement to the backyard, the Archer A20 delivers stronger WiFi across your home. Together Beamforming and RangeBoost provide far-reaching coverage throughout your home.
Access 2 Gbps Wired Connection
Link Aggregation combines two LAN ports to boost connection speed giving you to access to a 2 Gbps wired connection to your NAS and other devices.
VPN Server
Create a server at home and a secure connection to it so you can safely browse the internet and access your files when you’re away.
Works with Alexa
Turn on/off guest WiFi with Alexa voice control.
Easy Setup and Management
Set up the Archer A20 in minutes and manage via the intuitive web interface or the powerful Tether app (available on Android or iOS).
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Reviews with images
Looking for WPA3 to get rid of that ‘Weak Security’ Message? This has it!
Easy to set up. Note: be careful with your cables as I apparently messed up one of mine and spent hours trying to connect to the internet thinking it was the router malfunctioning. I almost put the TP-Link back in the box to return until I reconnected my old router and it had the same problem. I tried a new cable and problem solved. So just be sure your cables are sturdy and in working order.Comes with: Router, one USB cable, power cord, quick start guide.On mine, there is the cable going from TP-Link router to my Spectrum modem. There is another cable going from my TP-Link to my ADT security modem. Yours may vary. Then there is the power cord. That’s it for me, though there are 4 USB ports, I only need one.Relatively small. It’s thinner than my old D-Link and Linkseys. Though you will need top room for the 3 antennae.The Tether App is free. There you can configure your wireless.WPA2/WPA3 NOTE! If you are looking to change from WPA2 to WPA3 then you need to log in to tplinkwifi dot net - there you will find the Wireless area in the Advanced tab to change from WPA2 to WPA3 - see above photo—if you look for it in the Tether App you probably won’t find it there. Using tplinkwifi . net takes you to where you can do more configuring of your router. So, again, go to that link, look for ‘Wireless’ and that will give you a dropdown menu where you will see WPS—click on WPS and then click on the Advanced tab at the top of the page—you’ll see where to change your WPA status there. Save and you are done.Once you save the WPA2 to WPA3, your iPhone should not show that Weak Security message. Mine immediately went away once I saved the WPA3 in the TP-Link website I wrote above.For setup, I used the Quick-Start guide, but I also scanned the QR code to go to the Tether App. Really, for me, a combination of the Quick Start guide, the APP, and going to the link above did the trick. All three of these allowed me to familiarize myself with what the router will do.My old workhorse laptop does seem to be loading things faster. My old D-Link router was pretty old so replacing it has given me more speed. As well, I have more wireless devices pulling on my router so this TP-Link will be great for that.My iPhone 8Plus and my old iPad Air 2 immediately recognized and connected. As well, my old laptop recognized and connected, immediately. Zero problems. My Samsung Smart TV recognized the TP-Link immediately as well. My Smart Watch, etc. All seem to be working great.As for customer service—well, not as good as I’d like but not awful. Don’t try to call as you will only be frustrated. An email got me a response within about 24-36 hours—not good if you want instant help. So a chat session netted me an answer to my question very quickly; however, I got lucky and only 2 people were ahead of me, but when I’d tried the night before there were 22 people ahead of me—lawd!They do have a ‘community’ where you can look for your question, but you have to dig around in there. There’s a FAQ page as well, but again, you have to dig.Despite the customer service being a little difficult, I’m super happy I took the plunge with the TP-Link. I’ve had Netgear (many years ago), Linkseys, and D-Link and while those were fine, this one just may be my favorite as far as how easy it was to set up, the APP experience, etc.NOTE: Don’t forget to look for firmware updates. These, if any, are located in the Tether App—look under ‘Tools’ and then scroll down to ‘System’ and there you will see ‘Firmware Update’ - there you will see if you need to do an update.In the App you can also do Parental Controls but I don’t need that. You can create a Guest Network. There’s diagnostics in there. And etc.One cool thing is you can set you LED lights (under LED Control) to go off at night. This would be great if you have your router in a room where you don’t want to see the lights. My lights are hidden from me at night, but I still use it and it works.And, if all you want to do is have a router for wireless and not do anything else, you can do that.I’m quite pleased with it. I highly recommend.Thank you for reading; hope it helps with your decision!, Kathryn.
Top reviews from the United States
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Reviewed in the United States on November 30, 2020
Comes with: Router, one USB cable, power cord, quick start guide.
On mine, there is the cable going from TP-Link router to my Spectrum modem. There is another cable going from my TP-Link to my ADT security modem. Yours may vary. Then there is the power cord. That’s it for me, though there are 4 USB ports, I only need one.
Relatively small. It’s thinner than my old D-Link and Linkseys. Though you will need top room for the 3 antennae.
The Tether App is free. There you can configure your wireless.
WPA2/WPA3 NOTE! If you are looking to change from WPA2 to WPA3 then you need to log in to tplinkwifi dot net - there you will find the Wireless area in the Advanced tab to change from WPA2 to WPA3 - see above photo—if you look for it in the Tether App you probably won’t find it there. Using tplinkwifi . net takes you to where you can do more configuring of your router. So, again, go to that link, look for ‘Wireless’ and that will give you a dropdown menu where you will see WPS—click on WPS and then click on the Advanced tab at the top of the page—you’ll see where to change your WPA status there. Save and you are done.
Once you save the WPA2 to WPA3, your iPhone should not show that Weak Security message. Mine immediately went away once I saved the WPA3 in the TP-Link website I wrote above.
For setup, I used the Quick-Start guide, but I also scanned the QR code to go to the Tether App. Really, for me, a combination of the Quick Start guide, the APP, and going to the link above did the trick. All three of these allowed me to familiarize myself with what the router will do.
My old workhorse laptop does seem to be loading things faster. My old D-Link router was pretty old so replacing it has given me more speed. As well, I have more wireless devices pulling on my router so this TP-Link will be great for that.
My iPhone 8Plus and my old iPad Air 2 immediately recognized and connected. As well, my old laptop recognized and connected, immediately. Zero problems. My Samsung Smart TV recognized the TP-Link immediately as well. My Smart Watch, etc. All seem to be working great.
As for customer service—well, not as good as I’d like but not awful. Don’t try to call as you will only be frustrated. An email got me a response within about 24-36 hours—not good if you want instant help. So a chat session netted me an answer to my question very quickly; however, I got lucky and only 2 people were ahead of me, but when I’d tried the night before there were 22 people ahead of me—lawd!
They do have a ‘community’ where you can look for your question, but you have to dig around in there. There’s a FAQ page as well, but again, you have to dig.
Despite the customer service being a little difficult, I’m super happy I took the plunge with the TP-Link. I’ve had Netgear (many years ago), Linkseys, and D-Link and while those were fine, this one just may be my favorite as far as how easy it was to set up, the APP experience, etc.
NOTE: Don’t forget to look for firmware updates. These, if any, are located in the Tether App—look under ‘Tools’ and then scroll down to ‘System’ and there you will see ‘Firmware Update’ - there you will see if you need to do an update.
In the App you can also do Parental Controls but I don’t need that. You can create a Guest Network. There’s diagnostics in there. And etc.
One cool thing is you can set you LED lights (under LED Control) to go off at night. This would be great if you have your router in a room where you don’t want to see the lights. My lights are hidden from me at night, but I still use it and it works.
And, if all you want to do is have a router for wireless and not do anything else, you can do that.
I’m quite pleased with it. I highly recommend.
Thank you for reading; hope it helps with your decision!, Kathryn.
Looking for WPA3 to get rid of that ‘Weak Security’ Message? This has it!
Reviewed in the United States on November 30, 2020
Easy to set up. Note: be careful with your cables as I apparently messed up one of mine and spent hours trying to connect to the internet thinking it was the router malfunctioning. I almost put the TP-Link back in the box to return until I reconnected my old router and it had the same problem. I tried a new cable and problem solved. So just be sure your cables are sturdy and in working order.Reviewed in the United States on November 30, 2020
Comes with: Router, one USB cable, power cord, quick start guide.
On mine, there is the cable going from TP-Link router to my Spectrum modem. There is another cable going from my TP-Link to my ADT security modem. Yours may vary. Then there is the power cord. That’s it for me, though there are 4 USB ports, I only need one.
Relatively small. It’s thinner than my old D-Link and Linkseys. Though you will need top room for the 3 antennae.
The Tether App is free. There you can configure your wireless.
WPA2/WPA3 NOTE! If you are looking to change from WPA2 to WPA3 then you need to log in to tplinkwifi dot net - there you will find the Wireless area in the Advanced tab to change from WPA2 to WPA3 - see above photo—if you look for it in the Tether App you probably won’t find it there. Using tplinkwifi . net takes you to where you can do more configuring of your router. So, again, go to that link, look for ‘Wireless’ and that will give you a dropdown menu where you will see WPS—click on WPS and then click on the Advanced tab at the top of the page—you’ll see where to change your WPA status there. Save and you are done.
Once you save the WPA2 to WPA3, your iPhone should not show that Weak Security message. Mine immediately went away once I saved the WPA3 in the TP-Link website I wrote above.
For setup, I used the Quick-Start guide, but I also scanned the QR code to go to the Tether App. Really, for me, a combination of the Quick Start guide, the APP, and going to the link above did the trick. All three of these allowed me to familiarize myself with what the router will do.
My old workhorse laptop does seem to be loading things faster. My old D-Link router was pretty old so replacing it has given me more speed. As well, I have more wireless devices pulling on my router so this TP-Link will be great for that.
My iPhone 8Plus and my old iPad Air 2 immediately recognized and connected. As well, my old laptop recognized and connected, immediately. Zero problems. My Samsung Smart TV recognized the TP-Link immediately as well. My Smart Watch, etc. All seem to be working great.
As for customer service—well, not as good as I’d like but not awful. Don’t try to call as you will only be frustrated. An email got me a response within about 24-36 hours—not good if you want instant help. So a chat session netted me an answer to my question very quickly; however, I got lucky and only 2 people were ahead of me, but when I’d tried the night before there were 22 people ahead of me—lawd!
They do have a ‘community’ where you can look for your question, but you have to dig around in there. There’s a FAQ page as well, but again, you have to dig.
Despite the customer service being a little difficult, I’m super happy I took the plunge with the TP-Link. I’ve had Netgear (many years ago), Linkseys, and D-Link and while those were fine, this one just may be my favorite as far as how easy it was to set up, the APP experience, etc.
NOTE: Don’t forget to look for firmware updates. These, if any, are located in the Tether App—look under ‘Tools’ and then scroll down to ‘System’ and there you will see ‘Firmware Update’ - there you will see if you need to do an update.
In the App you can also do Parental Controls but I don’t need that. You can create a Guest Network. There’s diagnostics in there. And etc.
One cool thing is you can set you LED lights (under LED Control) to go off at night. This would be great if you have your router in a room where you don’t want to see the lights. My lights are hidden from me at night, but I still use it and it works.
And, if all you want to do is have a router for wireless and not do anything else, you can do that.
I’m quite pleased with it. I highly recommend.
Thank you for reading; hope it helps with your decision!, Kathryn.
Images in this review
Top reviews from other countries
Gustavo Vega Vazquez
Excelente cobertura y velocidad WFI
Reviewed in Mexico on June 14, 2019Dimitri S
I am soo satisfied with this Router
Reviewed in Canada on January 26, 2021
Gonzalo Villanueva
Justo lo que necesitaba.
Reviewed in Mexico on May 26, 2019
Gonzalo Villanueva
Reviewed in Mexico on May 26, 2019
Images in this review
Dan
Firmware update has solved all disconnect issues
Reviewed in Canada on March 26, 2021